Windows 10 available – should I upgrade?

Microsoft have released the latest version of Windows 10 and we have been testing it. Here are our initial findings.

The Good News
Windows 10 is already familiar and easy to use if you use Windows 7 including the much publicised return of the start menu. The new platform is fast and responsive. The design lets your desktop boot up and resume quickly and the system balances memory and processor resources efficiently which result in better overall performance. For laptops and mobile devices all Windows 10 devices have Battery Saver to automatically conserve power so you get longer run time.

Windows 10 has more built-in security protections to help safeguard you against viruses, phishing, and malware. New features are now delivered through always enabled updates helping you to stay current and your system maintain peak performance.

Windows 10 is designed to customise to your personal settings which transfer from device to device. Your Windows device can recognise you and acknowledges your presence in truly personal ways. Dependant on hardware, with Windows Hello you can log yourself in with a look or a touch. It is rated as enterprise-grade secure and there’s no need to type in a password. Your device even greets you by name and lights up in recognition.

The Bad News
Windows 10 sound great but here is the bad news.

As always with new Microsoft releases, not all third party manufacturers are up to date with their software integration. We have found a number of important products (such as VPN applications) that do not work yet with Windows 10. Updates are released all the time so this is a constantly changing environment.

Most UK banks have not ratified the security features of Windows 10 and the new browser – Microsoft Edge – yet. Most have issued a broad statement that it is not yet compatible to their systems and therefore the banks will not take any responsibility for any issues.

Windows 10 has been designed to integrate many different aspects of data sharing between devices and social connectors for sites such as Facebook. The whole subject is very complex and has many security considerations for home users but particularly for work users. It is probably best to set up the system initially in a local installation mode without all the native integration until you are comfortable with exactly what it is connecting to.

In Summary
Windows 10 is generally getting very good reviews. It is obviously a well designed system but there are issues with third party software integration. There are also many security considerations that need reviewing. The built-in security is a concern that if any aspect is breached, a one manufacturer solution is very exposed. We would therefore recommend that third party specialist antivirus and malware products are still used.

Our final view is that we cannot emphasise high enough, this new system needs testing in your own environment.